This Damnation
by Dreaming June
Summary: The year is 1935 and Rosalie has just rescued a handsome, dark haired man. Will she let her guilt and remorse go long enough to let him into her life?
1. Chapter 1: More Than This Damnation

A/N: I've loved Rosalie ever since I first read the books and I really wanted to flesh out her romance with Emmett as much as possible. So this is my attempt. Be kind =]

DISCLAIMER: I am in no way claiming ownership of any of this. It's all Stephenie Meyer's.

* * *

**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter One - ****More Than This Damnation  
**

I was furious. At Edward. At Carlisle, even at Esme. Every single thing they did, everything they said, pushed me further and further. Whenever Edward addressed me, I wanted to reached out and slap him across the face. Even when Esme attempted to soften me up with a new gown, I glanced up sharply at the dress and rolled my eyes like an insolent child. And I loved Esme, she was like a mother to me, even though she was really pretending to be my sister-in-law. Since we had come to Tennessee, Esme and Edward continued their façade as siblings; and Carlisle and I feigned a brother and sister relationship also.

To be honest, it wasn't my family I was angry at. It was the world. My life. How had it become so horrible? I was Rosalie Hale; I was destined to have a perfect life. Beautiful, rich and engaged to … well, no. That part of my life was far from perfect. If I had chosen a better man, my life _could _have been perfect. I could have had a true family and lived a _whole_ life.

I couldn't even cry anymore. My tears were replaced by the ugly venom that stripped away my humanity. But I don't think that, if I were still human, I would cry. I wouldn't give those monsters who destroyed my life the satisfaction of knowing that I cried. I was stronger than that.

I fled through the woods, following the scent of a deer when a new scent pulled me in a different direction. A human. I knew humans were off limits. It wasn't just a rule enforced on me by my _brother_, Carlisle. Living off animals was my choice. It was as powerful as my choice to rip Royce King to shreds.

Despite all this, I was drawn to the human. I ran and didn't stop until I saw blood. Not only was it a bleeding human, but it was unconscious. Or, I should say, he was unconscious. Hovering over him was a large, dark bear. This man had been mauled by a bear? And yet I could still hear his heart beat from a distance. Gathering my feet beneath me, I pushed myself off the tree I had been clinging to and leapt. The jump was far, but not high.

I landed only a few feet from the dying man, and I gasped. I hadn't genuinely gasped in so many months. It was Vera's son. Vera – my best friend when I had a life to live – was a wonderfully warm, truly beautiful person. We were complete opposites, as my mother used to say. I had only seen her son once, but he was gorgeous. Only a young lad but with dark hair so thick it curled at the ends. He would, some day, make a lucky girl a handsome husband.

My mind caught up with me. Vera's son would only be a child by now, it had only been a couple of years since I'd seen him. But this man looked so similar. The bear shuffled closer in what must have been a menacing poise and I whipped over to glare at it. I'd fed on a few bears in the past two years, but they had never been a favourite. They were violent creatures and always made a mess of my clothes. The bear reacted aggressively to my cold, inhuman gaze and roared.

My attack was sharp, quick and hard. It tried to claw at me, as it had done to the human laying behind me, but its paws drew nothing but air against my marble-like flesh. As much as lament about being this way, there were always exceptions. The strength was definitely one of them. And soon enough the bear fell to the ground, several feet away from me. As soon as he dropped, I turned towards the dying man.

It stunned me just how much he reminded me of Vera's boy. I stepped closer to him and knelt by his side. His eyes cracked open and his lips twitched into what looked like a smile. I swallowed, just for the sake of swallowing, and stared into his bright blue eyes.

The man's breathing was laboured and I could tell by the sharp decline of his heart rate that he didn't have many breaths left. I'm unsure as to what coerced me, but I acted without logic. I knew I couldn't turn him myself – I hadn't the self control – but Carlisle did. Despite the size difference, I picked him up without difficulty. I carried the dying human and ran faster than I ever had before.

* * *

"Rosalie?" Edward had opened the door as I entered the property. The distance between the gate and the house was quite far but I crossed it in a matter of seconds. Edward had, of course, heard my thoughts before Carlisle or Esme could smell my arrival. His eyes, a burnt amber, widened. "What have you done?" The disgust and horror in his voice made my skin crawl.

"Move," I hissed, pushing him from the doorway with the dying human still in my arms. "Carlisle?" I asked in my normal voice. He would have heard me even if I whispered. My _brother_ appeared before a second could pass.

I didn't even voice my please before the two men responded.

"No," my brother-in-law growled, his bronze hair ridiculously tousled and his eyes wild. He looked like a caveman.

"I'm not asking you," I hissed him, not taking my eyes off Carlisle. Second ticked away. Precious moments poured from us and I felt like I would burst. I wanted to scream and stamp my feet like I had in Rochester to my parents.

"Are you sure?" my brother asked. My stone cold heart filled with hot relief. I nodded. "Okay," he replied.

* * *

"I've never seen her like this." Esme's soft voice carried through the hallway and to my ears.

"I didn't leave your side when I changed you," her husband replied. I heard them exchange a kiss.

"This was a mistake." Edward's voice was louder than the other's. He didn't care whether I heard his opinion or not. He knew I didn't care what he thought.

A day had passed since Carlisle had bitten the human. He was now lying in my bed. His beautiful golden skin was damp with sweat, and I knew that very soon, it would lose its colour. The first few hours had been filled with screams. But it seemed that he learned it wouldn't go away and so he suffered silently. Such a strong brave man deserved more than this damnation.


	2. Chapter 2: Too Late

A/N: Thanks for the reviews =] I really hope I'm doing these characters justice, and that they're staying _in_ character.

DISCLAIMER: Stephenie Meyers owns these amazing, beautiful, inhuman people and their lives. I own ... nothing.

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**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter Two- Too Late  
**

I stared at him intently, glaring at him as he read.

"Stop staring at me," Edward said through clenched teeth. My brother-in-law wasn't reading a book; he was reading the thoughts of the man lying in my bed. Esme had been so worried about me, having not hunted in a week, that she sent Edward in to see if he could help. I loved Esme terribly, but I'm not sure what she was thinking. Edward and I couldn't stand to be around each other for more than a few seconds without bickering.

"What's he thinking?" I replied with a snarl. I could do so without worrying about being chastised: Carlisle and Esme had gone into town together.

Although the bronze haired boy seemed to despise me, the corners of his lips piqued. In response, I'm sure, to the dark haired man's thoughts.

"About angels."

I frowned, unsure of what he meant. Was Edward making another of his jokes that only he could understand?

The boy rolled his eyes at me. "About you. You're an angel, it seems." I growled wordlessly at the tone in his voice, as if I were as far from an angel as one could imagine.

"And the pain?" I asked, turning back to the handsome man.

"It's there. Just like with the rest of us. But he's stubborn enough to try to resist it."

For some reason, I didn't like Edward calling the man stubborn. It was true, I rarely liked anything my brother-in-law said. But a burst of protectiveness ripped through me. I had never before felt protective of anyone, or anything. When I was human I never had to protect anyone, I was always the one being protected. For the past two years, I've never had anything so dear that it needed defending.

It had almost been three days completely, only a few more hours to go. I was impatient, well I was always impatient, but I dearly wanted for the man's suffering to end. It was my fault, after all. I had been too rash in my decision to bring him to Carlisle. I had forced the same purgatory on this man as had been forced on me. I hoped he wouldn't hate me for it.

I looked up to see Edward staring at me, but not in his usual way. There was no annoyance or disdain in his ochre gaze. He understood. He, too, shared my view of the hopelessness of our existence. Carlisle and Esme had each other, they were happy. But Edward and I hadn't experienced the love they had for each other. We were alone, we were damned.

"I don't think he'll hate you," Edward said in a soft tone. I opened my mouth to reply in my automatic snapping to him whenever he responded to my thoughts, but we heard Carlisle and Esme approach the house. I pulled back and concentrated on the man. I knew nothing about him, not even his name. He looked young, but definitely not younger than either Edward or me.

"How is he?" Esme asked, having sped up to my room immediately. Carlisle was just a step behind her.

"He hasn't changed," I answered, still facing the man but I glanced up at Esme without so much as moving.

"He should pull out of it soon," Carlisle noted as he stood on the other side of the bed. The four of us stood there, motionless as the mountains we hunted on. We all stared at the man, as if we could will him to awake. Hours passed, and only Esme spoke freely. I was far too tense to be as chatty as she was. But Edward and Carlisle responded to her comments whenever she paused for their input.

And then he twitched, the movement more prominent than his previous ones had been. Esme remained silent and all I could hear was the reluctant thudding of the man's heart. And then silence. His heart stopped. I frowned, staring wide-eyed at the newborn vampire in our midst. The seconds passed so slowly. And then he moved again. His eyes opened and Esme gasped from behind Carlisle. They were bright red, as if his eyes themselves were bleeding. I wanted to sob; I would never see the beautiful blue of his human eyes ever again. And I had no one to blame but myself.

The man – the vampire – got up from the bed and stood in a swift, graceful motion. I could tell that as a human he must have been humorous because his lips were pulled into a playful smile. His ruby eyes settled on me and the corners of his lips lifted even more. They pulled to reveal his shiny, white teeth. Despite the smile, and how handsome he looked, the vampire appeared impossibly terrifying. He stepped forward and was shocked at the speed of his own movement.

He looked down at himself in confusion. The man raised his hand and curled it into a fist, the tendons in his arm flexing.

"What's your name?" I queried. I shouldn't have spoken so suddenly, because as soon as I had, the vampire looked up and took another quick step towards me.

"Emmett McCarty," he replied in a booming voice. Emmett – and I couldn't help but smile at the name – took a third step forward and reached out with his hand. There was nothing in his eyes that said he would hurt me, but both Carlisle and Edward reacted suddenly to the daring gesture. Carlisle backed up, curving his body protectively in front of Esme. Edward whipped forward – faster than even Carlisle – and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me backwards. He was so quick that I hadn't had time to fight against the pull.

Emmett didn't seem to like that. He advanced on us, on Edward and I. The bronze haired boy stood in front of me, as if I needed protection. I shifted to the side, moving around him so that I stood between Edward and Emmett. The anger in the newborn's crimson eyes dissipated quickly as he locked onto me again.

He resumed what he had been doing before. Emmett's large hand moved up to my face, his fingers tracing my cheek. If I could have, I would have blushed. Not because I was embarrassed, but because the sensation poured pleasure into my body like warm liquid. My heart would have quickened and I would have trembled. But I stayed completely still, staring up into his frightening red gaze.

"I'm Rosalie," I said. He smiled again and another burst of pleasure ran through my body. I _should_ have been embarrassed for the overt display of passion Emmett and I were sharing right in front of my family. But I didn't embarrass easily. We stood still, staring at each other with his hand against my cheek. And we didn't move until Carlisle stepped forward.

I nodded at him and took a slow step back.

"I'm Carlisle Cullen, this is my wife, Esme," he introduced, placing a hand on her shoulder. "And our … son, Edward." Behind the human façade, Edward and I both considered Carlisle and Esme our parents. It just seemed right. I glanced around at Edward as Carlisle gestured towards him. He nodded a greeting but Emmett glared at him. I bit back a smile. Well wasn't this interesting?

Before Emmett could act on his aggression, Carlisle spoke again. "I think, perhaps, we should explain to you about what's happened." He glanced at me, knowing that I would want to tell him.

"We're …" I was at a loss for words. Edward chuckled behind me, but stopped when Emmett looked at him again. I had never had to explain our existences to anyone before. How had Carlisle and Edward explained it to me when I had woken up last?

"We're vampires," I said. Emmett turned back to me, blinking. "We … I found you three days ago. You were being attacked by a bear…"

"Oh, yes," Emmett replied with another smile. He was happy about being mauled nearly to death? Or maybe just glad that he remembered something.

"You were going to die," I continued slowly. "I brought you back to Carlisle, and he saved you." I shut my eyes. I made it sound like we had saved him, but we hadn't. We had taken away any chance he had of being normal, of being happy. Shame coiled through me and Emmett gazed at me curiously as I opened my eyes.

He moved closer to me but stopped when he was again reminded of just how quick he was. It seemed to remind him of a word I had used to describe us. "Vampire?"

I nodded. "We … we live forever. And we're fast, and strong." It didn't sound like much when I said it like that. But from the smile that spread across Emmett's perfect features, it seemed to meant a lot to him. "And we dr—"

Before I got to the most crucial part of it all, I heard footsteps. Not from anyone in this room, but of someone walking up the path to our front door. I inhaled subtly and panicked. The scent of human blood caught me and everything happened very quickly. The human knocked on our door and the hard sound rang through the house.

Emmett's eyes blazed brightly and he thundered past Carlisle and Esme. Edward and Carlisle moved immediately, throwing themselves down the hallway and grabbed at Emmett. But he was a newborn, and he was much stronger than them. Esme and I sped over to the stairs. I stopped but she continued down until she reached the front door.

"Good day ma'am," the sound of a man's voice filled my ears and Emmett roared. Edward, Carlisle and I strained to pull him back and he shrugged off our attempts easily and barreled down the stairs.

"I'm sorry, this isn't a good time." I heard Esme's reply to the human just before I heard the man yelp. He must have just seen Emmett's blood red eyes. Edward sped down the stairs and Carlisle and I followed him. But we were too late.


	3. Chapter 3: Alone At Last

A/N: With A K - thanks reviewing =]

I hope this chapter's okay. I'm having a lot of fun writing this, but I'm not sure how much you guys are enjoying reading it. More reviews would be gratefully appreciated! =D The more critical the better, I'd love for hints so I can write better. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: All of this is owned by Stephenie Meyer. Etc.

**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter Three – Alone At Last**

Two seconds passed and no one moved. Carlisle stood, with his back against the door - guarding it with his hands stiff at his sides, watching the newborn. Esme clung to his side, her golden eyes flickering from Emmett's ruby eyes to the human blood trickling down his chin. Edward was closest to the dark-haired man, and I could see him straining not to inhale that heady intoxicating scent.

But my eyes were on Emmett's. He looked completely torn. The thirst was clear in his demonic eyes; it was obvious he wanted to cast Carlisle aside to get through the door and find another human to drain. There was something else in his gaze. Like a child who had just been told off by his parents. If the situation hadn't been so horrifying, I would have found his expression adorable.

I stepped forward and now I was closest to Emmett. I felt the air move behind me: Edward had shifted forward, as if preparing to pull me back if need be.

"Emmett," I said, trying to focus him again. He dropped the dead human to the ground and stared at me with solemn scarlet eyes.

"Rosalie," Edward grumbled from behind me. His hand moved to clasp around my elbow but I shifted away. I wasn't sure whether he was warning me against the newborn or the scent of temptation.

"Emmett," I repeated, "this isn't what we do."

"I…" he wiped the blood from his cheeks and chin. "I'm sorry. I …couldn't stop." But for all the remorse in his voice, Emmett looked longingly down at the dead body in our foyer.

"Rosalie," Esme said, "why don't you take Emmett out to hunt?" I turned to glance at her, and then looked back at Emmett. I nodded. Reaching my hand out towards him, I smiled when he took it in his without hesitating.

"Perhaps you should take Edward with you," Carlisle suggested as we moved towards the back door. Emmett didn't look happy about what my father implied, and I would have preferred to be alone. But having Edward there would make the whole situation much safer.

"No, Carlisle, it's okay –" I began.

"I should go with you." Edward moved forward. Why was he being such a nuisance?

"No, we'll be fine," I pressed through clenched teeth. I let go of Emmett's hand and moved over to Carlisle's side. I spoke in a whisper, my voice earnest, but I knew everyone could hear me. "Carlisle, he's just had his fill of human blood. We'll go somewhere in the mountains and I'll make sure no one else is around."

For a long moment my father thought. His liquid amber eyes looked from me, to Emmett, and then to Edward. I could see him arguing it through silently: Emmett could barely be thirsty anymore. And the less people around during his first hunt, the less distracted he would be.

But Emmett was a newborn; he was much stronger than any of us. And he lacked self control – as all newborns did. If something were to go wrong, he could easily overpower me. After all, I had only been a vampire for two years myself.

"Edward, would you please accompany them?" Carlisle finally decided. His tone was warm but authoritative. I nodded, a deep frown set into my brow.

--

The three of us ran. Edward had always been the fastest and he shot forward. Emmett was only a few paces behind him, and I only a foot or so behind Emmett. We ran until we were miles away from town. Edward had stopped in a small clearing.

I stopped several feet from him and looked at Emmett. A grin spread across his breathtaking face, as if he found this all to be a game.

Edward remained silent, looking at me to explain. And, again, I wasn't sure what to say. It wasn't something I usually spoke about. Especially to someone who didn't know about vampires already.

"We're different from most vampires," I said to Emmett. "We don't hurt humans, we hunt animals." He nodded, as if this all made perfect sense.

I paused, waiting for the scent of an animal to differentiate itself from the trees and insects. Then one caught: a deer. I tensed my body, forcing myself to absolute stillness so the deer wouldn't startle. Emmett looked at me, a question in his crimson eyes. He was asking for permission. I nodded sharply and he leaped.

Watching him was like seeing magic manifest itself. He was a natural. Emmett launched himself at the deer and my body eased as his hands caught the prey easily. It shrieked, helpless in his grasp. Emmett smiled up at me just before those shiny white teeth tore into the deer's throat.

"He _is_ a natural," Edward commented. "Much better than you on your first hunt." I rolled my eyes at him, but let it go as Emmett finished up.

"How was that?" he asked, the grin never leaving his face. He dropped the limp animal and returned to us in long powerful strides.

"It was fine," Edward answered.

"It was _good_," I corrected. "How are you feeling?" I turned to Emmett after throwing my brother a glare.

"Good," Emmett beamed. He stared at me, completely ignoring Edward. This man was a wonder to me. After the first time I fed, I had been a complete wreck. I felt like a monster, and the fact that my eyes were a blazing red didn't help whatsoever.

"Rosalie," Edward said, catching our attention. "Don't you think you should …?" He trailed off, gesturing at the wilderness meaningfully. He meant for me to find my own deer.

I nodded. "Why don't you stay here?" I suggested but Emmett shook his head.

"Let me accompany you," he protested. "I want to watch."

I paused, considering this. Emmett seemed to have had his fill and Edward looked rather bored. He glanced at the two of us, and then raised his head. He sniffed, checking the air for human scent.

"I think I might return home," he said as he glanced back at me. "Everything seems rather safe." The very fact that it was Edward who announced the region's safety meant that it truly _was_ safe. Emmett's thoughts must have told him that the thirst was gone.

I smiled up at Emmett as Edward made himself scarce. Alone at last.

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A/N: Please review! I've already written the next chapter and hopefully it'll be up soon =]


	4. Chapter 4: Watch the World Pass Us By

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything to do with Twilight ... well, except for my copies of the books. Everything else belongs to Stephenie Meyer.

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**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter Four – Watch The World Pass Us By**

"Rosalie." The way his low, silky voice sounded as it spoke my name sent hot shivers through my marble body. Emmett turned to face me and his eyes smouldered. "I like that," he added in a light hearted tone so different from his earlier tone that I smiled. I knew that my smile could stop hundreds of human men in their tracks – did it work on vampire men also?

I wanted to respond to Emmett, to speak his name as he had mine and evoke that same riveting pleasure in _his_ body. But my throat burned stubbornly and I needed to see to the task at hand. I sighed.

"Come on, let's find me something to drink." My smile widened with a slightly challenging tilt and I threw myself into the woods. _Catch me if you can_, I thought silently as I threaded around the trees. Emmett may have been faster than me, but was he as agile?

I heard a booming laughter and smiled to myself. The sound of him laughing was heavenly.

I stopped suddenly, attaching myself on a tree trunk. Emmett halted a few feet forward and remained completely still. Through the branches I could see another deer. As prey, they were essentially a staple. Sometimes I would hunt lions - they tasted much better - but I preferred the simplicity of deer. They didn't fight back.

My arms were wrapped around the large tree, the tips of my fingers piercing into its soft bark. My long legs were curled under me and my feet were planted vertically against the trunk. I pressed my long body against the oak; I wanted to stay as hidden as possible. I knew this position didn't look very comfortable, but I could have stayed like this for days if it weren't for the burning thirst that raked the back of my throat.

The deer nibbled some moss and while its head was down, I pounced. My leg muscles tensed and then released, springing me through the air. For a split second, it felt like flying. But then I landed - emitting only a soft thud - against the deer and we rolled until I braced my feet against a boulder. It's scream turned into a yelp when I bit into it.

I repeated this process once more, and after that I was content. I knew how I had transformed, even without a mirror. Before, my skin was so pale it looked harsh and chalky. My eyes would have been jet black and dark purple shadows would have accompanied them. Now, I knew my skin was more creamy than chalky, the shadows were gone and my eyes were the colour of butterscotch.

As I pulled back from the second deer's dead body, Emmett neared. It still struck me just how handsome he was. I would be glad for the day his eyes became the same buttery colour mine were now.

"You're not hurt?" he asked, his hand extended to me. Such a gentleman. I took his hand and pulled against his strength to get to my feet - even though I could have gotten up without his help.

"No." I shook my head. "I don't hurt easily. Just like you." He _loved_ that. Emmett's ruby eyes lit up and his lips pulled back into a toothy grin. He was so adorable. Had I been that beautiful after my first hunt? I remembered feeling like a complete beast; like I could never show my face in public again. I had been confused and horrified for so long.

"How is it that ... you're so understanding of all this?" I asked, tucking a few stray strands of golden hair behind my ear. His expression was serious all of a sudden: his grin melted away, his gaze lowered and he stepped closer. He didn't speak, so I continued. "How can you accept this, after how terribly we've wronged you?"

A flicker of surprise entered his eyes. "Wronged me? You haven't wronged me?" But of course. After the terror of my ruby eyes and bloody hands had passed, I was in awe too. How could anyone look at this beautiful existence and call it a curse? I was strong, and so fast; no one would be able to hurt me ever again. And I was stunning. I knew that I had been beautiful before, but after my transformation I was even more so.

My hair caught more shades in the sun: white gold, shimmering cornsilk. My cheekbones were better defined, my skin a porcelain white that shone like diamonds in the sunlight and my lips slightly fuller. How could I have hated what had brought me such beauty?

"You don't see what you've lost yet," I whispered. "We live forever," and his eyes lit up again, "but we must watch the world pass us by. We're never able to be truly happy, to have families and children ..." My voice broke off at that last word.

_That's _why I called my existence a curse. _That's_ why I hated it.

Emmett caught my verbal stumble. The light in his eyes blinked out again and his expression was solemn. The tall, large man before me took another step forward. I hadn't been this close to anyone but my family for so long.

I stared up at him, amazed by his beauty. Emmett raised his hand and caressed my cheek. Like before, it sent ripples of pleasure through me. His large fingers trailed down my jaw, along the smooth curve of my neck and across to my shoulder. I thought he was going to kiss me then. I could see it in my mind: he would tug gently on my shoulder and lower his face until his lips were on mine. But he surprised me.

He didn't kiss my lips. His hand continued down my arm until his strong fingers were clasped under my palm. Emmett pulled my hand up and kissed the back of it, like a perfect gentleman.

"I think," he murmured, his eyes burning into mine, "that I can be truly happy despite losing all of that."

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: thanks for the reviews guys, keep them coming =] tell me if there's something you want in it (like more action, or more Edward/Rosalie sibling rivalry moments, or maybe some more Emmett/Rosalie moments =P) This one's a bit short, but everytime I write, I just come to a certain point that seems to the end the chapters well. Enjoy!


	5. Chapter 5: An Errant Thought

DISCLAIMER: All of this is owned my Stephenie Meyer, and I'm not her.

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**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter Five - An Errant Thought**

Belmont University was a large, impressive building. In my past life, college hadn't ever been an option. Not many people went on to university, and only a few of those people were women. After I graduated from high school I was eager to settled down. Education had never been an ideal for me; I would have preferred to have gotten married and start a family. But now _that_ option was gone.

It had taken me nearly two years to control myself after my transformation. I no longer needed Carlisle or Edward to physically restrain me around the scent of a human. And my eyes had finally shifted to an amber light enough to be seen in public. After being cooped up in that Rochester house for two years, I _needed_ to be out and about. I craved to be seen, to know that people still stopped and stared when I walked by.

So as soon as those two years had passed, Carlisle relocated us to the mountains of Tennesee. He worked at the local hospital one town over, and Edward and I enrolled at Belmont University - I as Rosalie Cullen, and he as Edward Masen. At first I had been thrilled to go. The school work had been trivial - my new vampire mind absorbed and processed information with ease; and seeing people's reactions to me was a thrill.

But now that Emmett had joined us, I was less than excited about leaving the house. I didn't like being away from him - having to act normal around blissfully ignorant humans when all I wanted was to return home - but Carlisle insisted that I keep up appearances.

"Now that Emmett's technically gone missing, we can't have people suspicious of your disappearance also," he had said this morning. I protested haughtily, that the mountains were so far away from the college that no one would have pieced those two 'disappearances' together, but I knew Carlisle was right. Not only had Emmett disappeared, but the human he killed in the foyer was missing now also.

When Emmett and I had returned for that first hunt, the body was gone. Edward had disposed of it and Carlisle and Esme had cleaned up the mess. No one spoke a word about it. At least not to me. But that may have been because I spent every moment with Emmett, and the topic seemed taboo around him.

I didn't like the idea of leaving him alone. Granted, he wasn't truly alone; Esme would be there. But I didn't want to be away from him when he hunted.

"Rosalie, give it a rest," Edward sighed in exasperation. We were in between lectures at Belmont and sat with everyone else in the lunch hall. The less time we spent outside in the weak sun, the better. And Edward was completely paranoid about keeping up appearances, going so far as to buy us lunch.

"This is all so pointless," I murmured back, speaking so fast and low that no one else could hear me. "We should be with _him_. It's not safe." I couldn't help but lean forward as I argued, ignoring the scentless odours of the untouched lunch tray before me.

Through my peripheral vision I could see a few people looking at us. That wasn't uncommon. To humans, Edward and I were impossibly beautiful. And we kept to ourselves, adding to that mysterious allure. I liked it, knowing that I could still be appreciated as a monster, but it seemed to irritate my brother-in-law. How could he waste his beauty like this? Edward could have any girl he wanted, but he ignored every single one of them. Even me.

My brother shot me a look. "Get over yourself," he muttered before getting up gracefully and throwing out his lunch before leaving the lunch hall. I wasn't offended - I no longer cared what Edward thought of me. As the doors swung closed, many girls dropped their eyes from Edward's retreating figure to their friends. Their conversations buzzed with a distinctly higher level of enthusiasm and I could hear Edward's name in many of them.

I sat there, alone, looking around at the dozens of human girls. None of them were particularly beautiful, or particularly interesting to watch. But they all had something I didn't. They had so much, and they took it all for granted. I couldn't help but hate them for their ignorance.

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It was rare for the whole family to be together, sitting in the lounge room with nothing to do but simply enjoy each other's company. Normally we would be in separate rooms - because Carlisle and Esme enjoyed their privacy, and Edward and I couldn't stand each other most of the time. But tonight, just after sundown, the five of us sat in the lounge room. No one needed to hunt, so that option was out. It was just a strange coincidence that there was nothing to be done tonight.

Carlisle and Esme sat at one end of the well-decorated room. My father was reading through a small book, flipping back and forth every minute or so to make adjustments. My mother sat beside him, facing him, with a large pad in one hand and a charcoal pencil in the other. She was drawing him.

Edward was sitting at his piano at the other end of the room, playing a melody that I recognized from my days in Rochester. It reminded me of the large house I'd been cooped up in for so long. I sat in the middle, between the couch that my parents shared and the soft music. I had a pen in my hand and a book in the other - homework. Edward seemed unfazed by the amount of college work we received at Belmont, but I hadn't been going to school for as long as he had.

Beside me was Emmett. He seemed fascinated by everything that was going on. He stared into the fireplace, the embers dancing in his ruby eyes; he smiled every time the piano music became faster and more complicated; and his fingers played absently with a few strands of my hair.

Having him so close by felt good and I had to force myself to concentrate on my work. But I would glance up every so often, smiling at him. It was peaceful, which was quite a change from the past week. Getting used to having a newborn in the house was interesting. Teaching Emmett new things and seeing him discover some for himself was rather delightful. I glanced up at him, completely in awe of his distant gaze and the deep dimples in his cheeks. I felt as if I would explode, I'd never known anyone could have such an effect on me.

"Hoquiam?" Edward said suddenly, the music dropping off abruptly. The break in the silence had the four of us glancing over at him. Esme, Emmett and I shared the same confused looks, but Carlisle looked just as casual as he had been a second ago. Edward must have picked up a stray thought.

"Yes," Carlisle said simply. I wondered if I was the only who found Edward's mind-reading talents annoying. I frowned at Edward, hoping his response would make sense of the two-word-conversation. Emmett glanced from Edward to Carlisle, and Esme's gaze remained on her husband.

"Why?" Edward asked. I frowned. He watched Carlisle, who remained silent. "Oh," Edward murmured. My annoyance turned to frustration and I growled. One sided conversations were worse than Edward's other, less supernatural qualities. The only people who knew what was going on weren't in very talkative moods at the moment.

"What's going on?" Emmett asked. I didn't know how to answer that - what _was_ going on?

"Carlisle?" Esme urged.

He looked at his wife and smiled. "Just an errant thought that Edward picked up. Hoquiam is a little town in Washington."

"We're moving?" Emmett asked just as I thought the very same thing. We had only been in Tennessee a few months - could we be leaving so soon? I'd grown rather attached to the mountains.

"No," Carlisle said finally, his eyes on Edward. "No, we're not moving yet."

It took me a second to realize that the conversation was over. Carlisle returned to his notes and the piano began again. I shared a confused look with Esme, but she too returned to her sketching. I sat there, with Emmett even more confused than I, listening to Edward's composition become faster and more complex. I stared into the fire, my homework forgotten, and placed my hand in Emmett's.

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A/N: Thanks for the awesome reviews guys! They made me smile =] I sketched out this chapter before I read your reviews, so Emmett/Rose moments are a little thin. But I promise something a little ... romantic moments in the chapters to come. I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	6. Chapter 6: No Quiet Nights & Fireplaces

**Author's Note:** I'm extremely sorry for not updating sooner. I've been so slack about it, and I'd lost my muse for a while. Anyway. I hope you guys like this chapter (if you've returned after such a long time lol). Reviews will encourage me to write up another chapter *grins*

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**THIS DAMNATION**

**Chapter Six – No Quiet Nights and Fireplaces**

The house in the woods was dark and silent. Standing by the gate, any passerby would assume it had been abandoned many years ago. But any vampire would know from the scent that many of their own were residing there.

I stood just outside the Cullen property, pausing only because Emmett stepped forward to open the gate for me.

"Thank you." I smiled up at him, speaking in a low voice. He smiled back, shutting the gate behind him. I surveyed the house from afar. From the sounds of things … the house was empty. Emmett must have realized the same thing at the same time, because he grinned openly down at me. The two of us had been out hunting. It had been two weeks since Edward and Carlisle had spoken of Hoquiam and the topic was never mentioned again.

"Where is everyone?" Emmett asked as we made our way up to the house. The night was so cool and pleasant that we slowed our pace to a humanly stroll.

"Carlisle and Esme wanted to visit some of their friends up north," I answered. They had mentioned it this morning but I hadn't realized they had meant so soon. With the house stone cold empty, I couldn't think of any other place they would be. "Edward must be with them."

Emmett didn't miss a beat. "So they'll be gone for quite a while then?"

"A few days, I think." I couldn't help but smile. A few days alone with Emmett? No annoying, mind-reading brothers? No one to badger me about going to school? My mood lightened considerably over a period of three seconds.

We reached the house then and, again, Emmett opened the door for me. I reached my hand automatically to the left, to switch the light on. Edward had made sure we had the best system installed when we moved to the house, and I'd learned my fair share about electrical systems. But as the switch flicked down, the light remained dead. I frowned. We didn't _need_ light, but it was a human habit – much like breathing even when oxygen did nothing for our bodies.

"It's okay," Emmett said immediately. "We'll … build a fire in the fireplace." I smiled into the darkness – that seemed very romantic. I thought, for a moment, of Royce King Junior. When he had begun our courtship, there had been no quiet nights and fireplaces. I remembered almost never spending time alone with him.

"Rosalie?" Emmett pulled me back to the present. I looked up at him and found that I could see him much easier than before. My eyes travelled down to the fireplace, into the fire he had just built. He held out his hand and I lifted mine gracefully, placing it atop his. I liked the feel of his hand – his smooth skin and strong fingers – against mine. It filled me with heated passion, just to feel him touching me so innocently. Even when Royce kissed me, it had never been like this. Emmett pulled me over to the couch and we sat down together. I stared into the fire, wishing for the hundredth time that I could still feel its warmth for all it had to offer.

"Rose?" Emmett spoke again.

I looked up from the flames. "Yes?"

He looked slightly uncomfortable. That was strange, I'd never seen him like this before. "Why did you bring me to Carlisle?"

_Oh_. He must have been thinking about this for quite a while, to bring it up now. But of course, when I was first changed I knew why Carlisle had picked me. For Edward. For my beauty. It wasn't exactly a _good_ choice, but it had been explained to me by Esme nonetheless.

"Emmett," I started. Could I really admit to him just how selfish I was? It would change his impression of me completely. This fragile romance that was beginning to develop between us … it would all have been for nothing.

"I'm not questioning you," he responded quickly, perhaps to the panic in my eyes. "I'm glad you made that decision. I wouldn't have it any other way."

I scowled, even though part of me soared. It felt good to know that he wanted to be with me. But when would he learn just how horrible this existence was? I'd stripped him of his future and he was thanking me! I wish he understood that I was a monster, and that because of me, he was one too.

"You never told me why you saved me," Emmett went on when I hesitated.

"You reminded me of someone," I said without thinking. He looked a little disappointed. "No," I revised, shaking my head. "Nothing like that. You see, I had this friend back in Rochester …" I told him about Vera, and her son Henry. Just recounting that small part of my old life brought Royce to the fore of my thoughts again.

"You saved me because I … looked like a child?" Emmett asked, humour in his voice and on his lips.

I shared his teasing smile. "No …" How could I explain this? Esme had understood it immediately. She knew how much a child would mean to me, just as it would mean the same to her. "Emmett … did anyone tell you that I was engaged?"

His head snapped up and I suppressed a wince. There was something in his eyes, something that I had never seen in a man's eyes before. A recoiling, sort of like something snapping inside of him. He didn't like hearing that I had once been engaged. And, for a reason I couldn't quite comprehend, that made me feel wonderful.

"Just before I was changed, he proposed and I _thought_ I had everything I wanted." I emphasized that one word so strongly that it was impossible for Emmett to miss it. He frowned, his eyes softening very slightly. "You've seen the way Carlisle and Esme are around each other, haven't you?" I continued on before he nodded. "Well this man, Royce King Junior, he wasn't like that around me.

"He didn't love me the way Carlisle loves Esme. He didn't look at me the way Vera's husband looked at her." I paused, realizing that my voice was becoming more and more strained. My eyes flickered from the fireplace to Emmett. I wondered what he was thinking. "I realized then that I wanted to be with someone who loved me, not someone who treated me like a painting he won at an auction."

Emmett nodded solemnly. "And I wanted a child. A baby of my very own, just like Vera had. So when I saw you … and you looked just like Henry." I stopped again. Why exactly did I save Emmett? "There was something about you. I couldn't let you die." I stopped and bit my lip. I had just confessed to him how I felt.

This was different. I was nervous and I was almost never nervous. I could have had any man I wanted, because of my beauty, but did Emmett care for me? Could he see past my lovely features and truly … love me?

Emmett remained silent. He leaned forward. One of his hands lifted from his lap and I thought he was going to touch my cheek. But the base of his palm only tickled my jaw as he placed his hand gently along the curve of the very nape of my neck, his fingers tangled in my hair.

I could feel my body react as he continued to lean in closer. It wanted to flush hot and tremble but it couldn't anymore. Instead, I felt venom well in my mouth, and wondered if this was normal. My eyes fell closed and then he was kissing me. A slow, gentle kiss that I hadn't expected from him. He looked like the type to kiss roughly, to follow his instincts and press hard.

But his lips were feather light against mine and it was _I_ who urged _him_ for more. I parted my lips against his mouth and he obliged, doing the same. The kiss turned from chaste and sweet to breathlessly passionate. I felt the strength of his arms as they curled around me like a protective cage.

My own hands travelled up to his neck, one twining its fingers into his hair, and the other tracing patterns on his jaw. When we broke apart – and I wasn't sure who it was who pulled back first – his eyes were blazing. _Yes. This_ was the kind of love that I had yearned for.

"I think," Emmett whispered, his face still very close to mine, "that this human was a fool not to love you."


End file.
